38 killed in tribal clashes in S. Sudan, UN orders probe
August 9, 2017 (JUBA) – At least 38 people were killed when the Apuk and Aguok clans clashed in the north-west of the country, an official has disclosed.
South Sudan was plunged into a military conflict when a split between Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar escalated in December 2013. Since then, tens of thousands have been killed and about 3.8 million displaced, according to the United Nations.
The United Nations said on Monday it was investigating reports that 25 people were killed in South Sudan‘s central Gok state in clashes between two tribal factions.
A U.N. official in South Sudan‘s capital Juba was quoted saying they had received reports on Saturday that 25 civilians had been killed and 27 wounded in clashes between Waat and Ayiel, two ethnic groups that are part of South Sudan‘s Dinka Gok tribe.
Until now, it remains unclear what could have caused clashes between the two clans.
Baipath Majuec Riel Puop, a legislator from Gok State was quoted saying clashes begun with the killing of a member of one of the two groups by another, thus causing retaliatory attacks.
Puop blamed the violence on the area local authorities whom he said had failed to arrest the perpetrators of the clan violence.
“The role of the state is to protect the people and when something like that happened, it is they to arrest,” Puop told the U.N sponsored Radio Miraya Tuesday.
Ethnic violence in South Sudan has a long history among its varied ethnic groups. South Sudan has 64 tribes with the largest being the Dinkas, who constitute about 35% of the population and predominate in government.
Most conflicts in South Sudan are reportedly aggravated among nomadic groups over the issue of cattle and grazing land and is part of the wider nomadic conflicts.
(ST)